Fatal Snow
by TDsamo
Summary: Revised. Low on money AGAIN^^, the crew of the Outlaw Star must find a good-paying job. When they finally do, they get more than they bargained for. I'm so evil.... I'm gonna torture all of 'em! BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAH!!! ^^ pleez r&r!
1. Bounty

It has been one year since the experience with the leyline. The year has been largely uneventful, save for a single lead on Melphina's past: the name Annalii. However, the lead appeared to be false. Annalii was a street artist who apparently died at the age of 11.   
The crew has spent the remainder of the year hunting down numerous bounties, and in the process somehow managed to blow up nearly 1,000,000 wong's worth of property, machinery, etc. more than they made bounty hunting. Aisha has taken an interest in a male Ctarl Ctarl named Sorn, and the feeling is obviously mutual. Suzuka has consumed approximately 982 gallons of tea, and shows no sigsn of stopping. She continues her job as an assassin while staying with the others. Gene has done nearly no work, and prefers to stare at Melphina for several hours at a time. Jim has been afflicted with numerous migraines, which of course have no connection to Gene's sloth.:) He also celebrated his twelfth birthday by going to the movie Captain Bloodhunter III. He no longer has dinner before movies.   
They now have returned to Centinel III in a desperate attempt to raise money, and are currently residing there.  
  
ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸, ø¤º°`°º¤ø ,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø   
  
Jim yawned and leaned back in his chair. Starwind and Hawking was low on money again, and of course it was up to the younger member to seek out the job. He glanced over at Gene. As usual, he was staring at Melphina again.  
  
Jim often wondered why his aniki didn't just gather up his courage and pop the big Q. They obviously both liked each other. The twelve year-old sighed and shook his blonde-crowned head. He really should get back to work. Their current total debts added up to exactly 926,684 wong. He scrolled down the wanted section of the police's files.  
  
Hacker Hanna  
Wanted for hacking into and altering valuable business files.  
450 wong.  
  
Robber Rob  
Wanted for robbing numerous bars and shops.  
100 wong.  
  
Kill-a-man Kurt  
Wanted for murder.  
20000 wong.  
  
He should make note of that last one. The rest were just pathetic, and all of them had a strange, corny sound to their names that just gave him the creeps. He scrolled down some more. Blah, blah, blah, and, just for a change of pace, blah, He thought. We need some real wanted man, not just a bunch of nobodies pretending they're bad They're not worth anything. He was about to give up when something caught his eye. No way... He reread it, just knowing he hadn't seen correctly the first time. Surely there weren't that many zeros.  
  
Wasp  
Wanted for numerous murders, hijacking, thefts, robberies, etc.  
1,000,000 wong.  
  
There were. He stared at the picture of the gaunt, swarthy face and long, lank black hair. It looked like the man didn't really need a bounty hunter to pick him off- more like he would just drop dead from malnutrition any day now. Or was it even a he? The face was so slim, and the hair shadowed the eyes... It was hard to tell. But that didn't matter. They'd finally found a real job! Or rather, Jim had found them a real job. Oh well, business as usual.  
  
"GENE!!!!" The redheaded man turned.  
  
"What? Didja find something?" Gene said, annoyed. He was always annoyed when he had to pull his full attention from her...  
  
"Did I find something? DID I FIND SOMETHING??? ANIKI LOOK!" Hastily he printed out the ad and shoved in front of Gene's face. Gene grabbed the paper. His narrowed eyes widened as he read the reward.  
  
"Woah!"  
  
"What is it?" Melphina wanted to know. She pulled her nose from the book she was reading and peered over at the two guys.  
  
"A good-paying job!" Gene said, eyes as big as dinner plates. "We can finally pay off all those debts, and still have money left over." Money I can use to buy her a... "Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go find him!"  
  
They didn't see the face watching through the window. With the sun behind it, it was almost impossible to distinguish from the shadows. A smile glimmered, and a hand brushed a strand of shadowed hair back. A voice murmured quietly, in a pleasantly even voice, slightly amused.  
  
"Too easy..."   
  
ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸, ø¤º°`°º¤ø ,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø  
  
It didn't take much questioning before they learned the whereabouts of someone to talk to about Wasp. Just a little poking, prodding, and bribing of the little spare wong they had left. They also had to have several cases of "amnesia" concerning the sources of information. They now headed through a back alley, almost impossible to get through, as it was so littered with trash.  
  
"Seems this Wasp guy's pretty tough, huh Gene?" Jim said as he rooted around for the cellar door that was supposed to be around there. Gene looked up.  
  
"I guess." He looked at the wanted picture again. "Doesn't look so bad to me. Man, I can't find the blasted door anywhere!" He said angrily. They heard a soft laugh from above. Gene readied his caster and called out. "Who's there?" They heard a soft swooshing sound, and a black-cloaked figure dropped down, seemingly coming from nowhere. It straightened.   
  
"What business is it of yours?" a soft, female voice purred.  
  
"We're looking for someone who knows about Wasp," Gene answered.  
  
"Follow me." The figure stepped over to the brick wall and tapped a stone in a pattern that the two bounty hunters couldn't see. It slid in, followed by a door-sized section of the wall. She slipped in, and they followed. Just like in movies, Jim thought. Weird.  
  
Inside the wall was what looked like an interrogation room. There was a small round table in the middle, with a single lightbulb hanging from above. Strangely convenient, three chairs sat around the table.  
  
"Please, sit." They did. She sat as well. "Now. About Wasp." The woman rested her chin on her hands. "I've tried to hunt him down many a time, throughout many systems... Never did get him. Normally I won't give out information, though I can be persuaded..." She left the sentence hanging.  
  
"With what?" She shrugged, then spoke. "Money, equipment... Weapons." She eyed the caster. Jim watched.  
  
"Anything else?" he asked.  
  
"Depends. Maybe I'll just do it because..." She paused. Gene waited. He had to hear that voice again. It sounded almost familiar. A very faint memory, perchance. It continued. "Because I'm interested." They couldn't see it, but they could definitely feel her gaze upon them, sizing them up. "Yes," she decided finally. "Wasp often hangs out around that old dead garden on the outskirts. What's it called. Eden." She did not go on.  
  
"That's it? All right." Gene stood up, as did Jim. She got up and walked to the door, pushing it open. "Oh, and Starwind?" Gene turned.   
  
"Yea?" She smiled slightly.   
  
"He's not named after a stinging insect for nothing."  
  
ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸, ø¤º°`°º¤ø ,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø  
  
  
Revised it a bit. I think it's better with more at the end. Tell me whatcha think! And keep checking back, I might do this again.  



	2. Prey is Predator

Finally, a second chapter! I've been working on my Zelda fic, cuz I haven't been in the mood really to write about OLS. I can only write (semi)well when I'm in the mood. Anyways, prepare for Sorn torture! MWAHAHAHAHAHA!!!! *Cough**inhaler* I gotta learn to stop doing that so much... *wheeze*  
  
ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸, ø¤º°2°º¤ø ,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø  
  
"Two #19 and 3 #6," Jim handed the shells to Gene. "I really hope you don't plan on using all of these, or even any if you can help it, Gene. You know they're expensive."  
  
"Yeah, yeah, whatever." Jim sighed. Gene was always like this, always throwing caution to the wind, letting a twelve year-old handle it instead. That was really pathetic, and he knew it would cost them someday. At least Aisha and Sorn would be coming along. It was hardly likely that anyone could get the best of a top class bounty hunter, a genius, and two amazingly strong Ctarl Ctarl. Yeah, they would be fine for now.  
  
Gene finished loading his caster and stood up. "Let's go."  
  
"About time," Sorn said and stretched. The two had been eager to go since they first heard from Jim about the bounty. They had been getting restless from just running around doing odd jobs for small amounts of money. They all headed out the door.  
  
Then they stopped, as Gene did.  
  
"Um...Jim?"  
  
"What now?" Gene grinned sheepishly.  
  
"Where exactly is Eden?"  
  
ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸, ø¤º°`°º¤ø ,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø  
  
They sorted out where it was after about a half hour of looking through maps. An hout later, they finally found it. They got out of the car and looked around.  
  
"Geez, Gene, you really are pathetic," Jim said.  
  
"He really has a point there," Aisha supported.  
  
"Aw, shaddup, at least we're here. Now what? All she said was that he hung out around here. Should we just wait or should we look for him?"  
  
"Uh, I dunno. Maybe he'll pop up soon by himself."  
  
ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸, ø¤º°`°º¤ø ,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø  
  
They were unaware of the figure in the tree watching them.   
  
ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸, ø¤º°`°º¤ø ,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø  
  
"That source could have been bogus."  
  
"But Clyde did suggest it, and he's never lied before."  
  
ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸, ø¤º°`°º¤ø ,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø  
  
It moved slowly, so as not to attract any attention, as it shifted into a more comfortable position.  
  
ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸, ø¤º°`°º¤ø ,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø  
  
"Maybe Clyde didn't know?"  
  
"Maybe... Or maybe Wasp's already here."  
  
ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸, ø¤º°`°º¤ø ,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø  
  
Wasp pulled out his dartgun, already loaded. He aimed. A slight rustle of leaves. He cursed inwardly and fired.  
  
ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸, ø¤º°`°º¤ø ,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø  
  
Sorn and Aisha turned. They'd heard the unnatural sound. Unnatural because there was no wind today...  
  
"Aisha, watch it!!" Sorn pushed her out of the way, and a dart pierced his arm. He roared with pain as a huge, fiery-colored welt rose up instantly. He yanked it out and turned, gritting his teeth. Wasp jumped out of the tree and moved quickly toward the group.  
  
"Here he comes, look out!" Gene yelled. He took aim with his blaster and fired back.D**n! He was way too fast! Wasp fired three more darts, all in a row, then jumped over Gene and fired at his back. Gene dodged, but was grazed in the side painfully, and turned. Too slow. Wasp was already skittering towards the Ctarl Ctarls. Aisha growled and lunged at him, narrowly missing being hit by a dart. Even she wasn't quick enough to grab him! The hunted, now the hunter, rolled out of the way and shot at Sorn's head. The man swiveled his head away, and the dart passed just millimeters before his eyes. Sorn straightened and was about to go after Wasp, but suddenly, his body seized up. His arm twitched and the redness spread down it and over his chest and neck in tendrils. He fell.  
  
"SORN!" Aisha yelled and ran toward him. Jim didn't know what to do. Was Sorn... Aisha was cut off by Wasp, shooting more darts at her.  
  
"You b*****d!" She screamed and charged after the antagonist, but again, he was already gone.   
  
Wasp ducked behind a tree for a moment and pulled another dart out of his pocket. He removed the cap and loaded it. No more playing...  
  
"That's it!" Gene pulled out his caster and aimed it at the reemerging Wasp. Wasp aimed at him. They both fired. One hit home. The other spiraled off, a direct *miss*.  
  
Wasp was gone, a piece of paper fluttering down behind him. Gene yanked the dart out, and bit back a scream of pain. Then he grabbed the paper and ran over to Sorn, where Aisha and Jim already were. Aisha was frantically checking for a sign, any sign, that he was still alive.  
  
"Sorn, Sorn! C'mon get up! SORN!" She yelled, and collapsed over him, breath heaving with tears held back. Jim and Gene looked away. Suddenly, Aisha stopped. She pressed her ear closer to her love's chest, then sprang up.  
  
"He's alive!" She yelled.  
  
"What?" Gene and Jim chorused.  
  
"His heartbeat- it's very faint but I can hear it! We have to get him to a hospital now!"  
  
"Say no more!" They carried him into the car and sped off, not caring about stoplights.  
  
ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸, ø¤º°°º¤ø ,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø  
  
"If you'd like, I'll wait at the same place tonight for a rematch, 11:00 pm sharp. It is in your best interests to come... It would be a terrible shame for the tiger-man to die, and he will without the antidote. Damn!" Gene cursed as he finished the note, and winced. That dart had just grazed him, so he wasn't poisoned, and apparently the other one had been empty, or he would be in the same condition as Sorn. Sorn was on life support, and his heartbeat was a mere blip on the screen, with several seconds' pause in between. Aisha refused to leave his side. Footsteps tapped quietly, and Twilight Suzuka walked over.  
  
"You'll need help," she said. Gene looked up.  
  
"Yeah..." He looked away, and Melphina squeezed his gloved hand. Though they had only met Sorn a month ago, he had become a very close friend to all. Confident, joking, and faithful to Aisha, it was little wonder that he had charmed her so quickly. Her new, more mellowed personality had also been welcomed. Gene couldn't imagine living without him cracking jokes while shamelessly flirting with Aisha.  
  
Jim stared at his laptop as Suzuka sat next to him. He felt pretty guilty, not having been able to help at all. He'd just sat there and watched. He now was trying to make up for it by finding information on Wasp, the poison, anything that would help. He was not having any luck.  
  
Suzuka didn't let it show, but she was also beating herself up inside for not being there. She could've helped, but she'd been busy elsewhere. Even when she had heard from Melphina where they were, she had payed it little heed. She, like Jim, had expected them to be able to handle it.  
  
Sighing, Melphina leaned on Gene's shoulder. He didn't mind anymore, like he used to. She was disappointed she could really do no more than just comfort everyone afterwards. And she felt she had been being demanding. They'd found out, soon after they'd left the Galactic Leyline, that there was more to her past. Before she'd been an android, she'd lived a short life, seventeen years, as a real human being. They'd tried to find out more, but all they'd found was the name Annalii. And as luck would have it, she'd died just before they could meet her. She was only eleven. Mel squeezed her eyes shut. She had wished that somehow, she might be able to take out the poison as she'd done with Gene before. But it hadn't worked. She felt truly useless.  
  
Seeming to sense her tortured thoughts, Gene put an arm around her. She felt a little better when he did that.  
  
Aisha was leaned over Sorn, carefully grooming his black hair with her rough, pink tongue. She wasn't going to let anything else happen to him. She would stay here and keep watch, not leaving his side until he was better... if he got better. Stop thinking like that! Aisha told herself severely. Maybe he's not getting any better yet, but he's definitely not getting worse.  
  
"Stay with me Sorn," she whispered. "You can pull through this, I know you can." She continued grooming his locks of hair, unaware that Gene, Jim, and Suzuka were leaving for Eden again.  
  
ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸, ø¤º°End of Chapter 2°º¤ø ,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø,¸¸,ø¤º°`°º¤ø  
  
Hm, well I was going to have more in this chapter, but it's long enough now. Don't worry, the next one won't take as long. Please keep reading and reviewing, and watch for the next chapter- "Fatal Snow"!!!  



End file.
